Seam-ripper



No. 608,206. Patented Aug. 2, I893.

L. MERRILL.

SEAM BIPPER.

(Application filed July 24, 1897.)

(No Modem WITNESSES lNVEN r02 A TTOHNEYS- THE scams PETERS co.FHOTO-LH'HO wnsmus-rom o LEMUEL MERRILL, OF MELROSE, MASSACHUSETTS.

SEAM-TRIPPER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 608,206, dated August2, 1898.

Application filed July 24, 1897.

T0 at whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, LEMUEL MERRILL, of

Melrose, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, haveinvented a new and Improved Seam-Ripper, of which the following is afull, clear, and exact description.

. The object of my invention is toconstruct a device for ripping seamswhich will be of exceedingly durable and simple construction and capableof being operated either by hand or by applied poweras, for example, byattachment to the needlebar of a sewing-machine.

Another object of the invention is to so construct the ripper as toembrace a body-section and a knife held to reciprocate within thebody-section in such manner as to cut the threads of a seam at both itsup and its down movement, the cutting operation being practically acontinuous one.

Another object of the invention is to so construct the body of theripper that it will readily enter a seam, and whereby the seam may beconveniently and expeditiously fed to'the knife.

The invention consists in the novel construction and combination of theseveral parts, as will be hereinafter fully set forth, and pointed outin the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part ofthis specification, in which similar characters of reference indicatecorresponding parts in both figures.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the improved ripper, illustrating it asapplied to a sewingmachine. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section through theripper, taken practically on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1.

The body A of the ripper is in the nature of a shield taperedlongitudinally, its outer end 10 being quite thin, and in the said outerend a slot 11 is longitudinally made, which slot is shown as tapering orof V shape, connecting at its contracted inner end with an aperture 12of circular form, the aperture being provided to facilitate the cutthreads readily leaving the shield. In the drawings the shield is shownas consisting of one piece of metal bent upon itself to form two membersmore orless widely separated at their inner ends and brought closelytogether or Serial No. 645,847. (No model.)

bar 15, and from the inner end of the basebar an upright 16 is carried,adapted to be attached to the stationary drop-arm of a sewing-machinethrough the medium of a setscrew 17 or its equivalent, the base 15 ofthe attachment being adapted to rest upon the bed or plate of themachine.

A ripping-arm 18 is pivoted between the members of the shield near theirdiverging portions, and the forward end of this rippingarm is madeconvexedorrounding and is sharpened at its top, front, and bottom edgesto form a knife 19. tween the members of the shield at the contractedportion of the slot 11 in the bill of the shield.

Thus it will be observed that no matter Whether the arm 18 be movedupward or downward the knife 19 will cut the threads of the seam fed tothe shield, and this constant or continuous cutting operation of theknife is due to its rounded or cylindrical cutting edge. When the deviceis to be used in connection with a sewing-machine, the ripping-arm 1B isattached to the needle-bar of the machine by means of the set-screw 20,that is used to hold the needle, said setscrew being passed through aslot 21 in the said arm and into the said needle-bar, as illustratedalso in Fig. 1.

It is evident that when used in connection with a machine the ripper canbe quickly operated and both hands of the operator may be used to guidethe work. The ripper is furthermore of such a construction that whilethe threads in a seam will be quickly and cleanly out there is no dangerof cutting the material, since the knife is entirely protected by theshield, except at that portion which is to be brought directly inengagement with the threads. 3

Having thus described my invention, I

This knife has play beclaim as new and desire to secure by LettersPatent- 1. A seam ripper, comprising a shield formed of twoopposingplate members slightly separated in the body thereof andtapering to a contact at one edge, said plates havinga tapering notch inthis edge terminating in a circular enlargement, and the cutter-bladehaving a rounded sharpened end and pivoted between said members toreciprocate across said notch.

2. A seam ripper, comprising a shield formed of a plate bent uponitself, the halves in the main being parallel and slightly separated buttapering to a sharp edge at the bend,

